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Ptosis (Droopy Eyelid)

When ptosis, or a droopy eyelid, is affecting your child’s vision and learning, our team of pediatric ophthalmologists will do whatever it takes to help your child achieve the best vision possible. If the ptosis is related to a neurological or another condition, we work closely with pediatric specialists around Nemours to treat your child’s vision problem.

Learn More About Ptosis in Children

Ptosis (“toe-sis”) or droopy eyelid may involve one or both upper eyelids. Sometimes an eyelid can be so droopy that it blocks vision or causes a child to hold his or her head in an abnormal position in order to see well. Ptosis may be present at birth (congenital) or show up later in life (acquired).

What are some of the causes of ptosis?

One of the most common causes of droopy eyelids is poor development of the muscle in the upper eyelid, but ptosis of the eyelid can also be caused by neurological conditions that affect the nerves and/or muscles of the eyelid, or rarely by an eyelid mass.

Treating Pediatric Ptosis in Orlando

Depending upon the severity of the ptosis and how the drooping eyelid is affecting your child's vision and learning, Nemours ophthalmologists at Nemours Children's Hospital may recommend treatment for ptosis, possibly including prescription glasses or surgery.

The pediatric ophthalmologists at Nemours Children’s Hospital in Orlando know kids, and how to make kids feel comfortable. This means we have the expertise to perform comprehensive evaluations and high quality exams on children of all ages, even babies, that can result in more accurate diagnoses. Our providers also have unique expertise working with children who have special health care needs.

At Nemours, we recognize the importance of the family in the care and healing process. Because many of the children we see have chronic illnesses that require repeated visits, we build strong relationships with our families that foster respect, dignity and collaboration. We’re also committed to educating children and families about the medical condition, and how best to manage it. Our goal is to get your child back to the business of being a kid as quickly as possible.

A Hospital Designed by Families, for Families

At Nemours Children’s Hospital, family-centered care is at the heart of everything we do. In fact, families helped shape the unique amenities and convenient services that make our hospital like no other in the region.

If Your Child Needs to Stay Overnight at Our Hospital

You’ll feel right at home in one of our private patient rooms designed with input from families who know what it’s like to have a child in the hospital.

Our large, comfortable, single-patient rooms have sleeping accommodations for two parents, a private bathroom, wireless Internet access, connections for DVD players and game systems, and two flat-screen TVs.

Other in-room features include:

full floor-to-ceiling windows for natural light

refrigerator for family meals and snacks

wardrobe storage for personal items and a hotel-style safe

GetWellNetwork interactive television (uniquely based on your child’s age, medical condition and more) and allows your child to watch TV, surf the Web, check e-mail, play music and games, and learn about your Nemours health care team

Our “hospital within a garden” setting features many places for you and your family to go for fresh air and relaxation, including a one-acre interactive sensory discovery garden or one of our rooftop gardens on the second and fourth floors.

If your child needs medical imaging, we offer some of the area’s most advanced pediatric radiology services here on campus at Nemours Children’s Hospital.

Our unique services include:

interventional radiology: Our team of experts uses image guidance to diagnose and treat diseases and tumors throughout the body. Certain conditions that previously required open surgery can now be treated by Nemours pediatric interventional radiologists. We are very fortunate to have the only dual-trained pediatric diagnostic and interventional radiologist in the state.

Central Florida’s only 256-slice Brilliance iCT Scanner: We are one of only a handful of children’s hospitals in the country to have this latest generation CAT (or CT) scanner that scans faster than most machines and produces excellent images in a much shorter time with much less radiation exposure for the child.

Our team of board-certified pediatric radiologists and pediatric radiologic technologists are experts in the safe medical imaging of children of every age, even newborns.

We have also pledged our commitment to the “Image Gently” campaign of the Alliance for Radiation Safety in Pediatric Imaging, which is increasing awareness of the opportunities to promote radiation protection in the imaging of children.